He was dropped off in our backyard when he was appx 2 or 3 months old. He just turned 4 in June. As best as the vet can tell he's chow, german shepard, golden retreiver and whatever else is anybodies guess. He has the temperment of mouse, bark and size (115 lbs) scares everybody but lets any kid that walks up to him lay on him. Scared the neighbors when one of their bichon frise's got loose the other day while he was walking, there little dog had him down by the neck in about 2 seconds. The chihuahua was a purebred the owner was moving and couldn't keep. She's 14 weeks old and other than the cat beating both of them up on occasion she belongs to him sleeps in our bed with him, (wifes idea not mine). Still deciding as to breeding her since she is registered. In the last year we've had 8 dogs just appear in our yard. 2 we found the owners of they had wondered nearly 6 miles. One we were able to find a home for with a neighbor whose pet had to be put down due to cancer. The rest surprize the local animal control found homes for them all. If they were going to be put down the wife was going to take them and then worry about finding homes for them. If you really want a different pet get a rat, yes a rat it was our sons first pet clean, quiet, would only use the bathroom in one spot never bit him (unlike the white mice I had as a kid).

Any thoughts on breeding?? Other than being a purebred both the wife and I beleive in spaying and neutering. With what breeders are charging around here for chihuahuas ($400-$800)

Congratulations and thanks for giving them both a good home. Buddy has the sweetest looking face.

As far as breeding goes, I suggest reading the text I have pasted below. This is taken from a Labrador Retriever forum I am on and was written by a person who runs a Retriever Rescue with the help of a few very reputable breeders. It is important to take an honest look at your motives for breeding. If money shows up anywhere on the list (meaning profit), then you should not be breeding. I hope this info helps.

To Breed or Not to Breed
This question plagues people every single day. Let me tell you, there are many reasons why people decide to breed their dogs and there are millions of reasons why people should not breed.

Reasons that people give as reasons to breed:
My dog is awesome. I want to have his legacy live on.
My children would benefit from seeing the miracle of birth.
I want to make money off of my dog. (repay what I paid in theory)
They are AKC registered and come from championship lines.
I didn't plan on breeding but she accidentally got pregnant.
My dog is beautiful, others have told me they want a dog just like it.

None of these reasons make the persons or dogs involved reputable or necessarily "breeding stock". These reasons for breeding usually result in what are known as Back Yard Breeders (BYBer) and produce dogs for the sake of producing dogs and not for the betterment of the Labrador breed.

Did you know that there are OVER 125,000 Labrador Retrievers registered with the American Kennel Club annually? This is but one registering entity in the world (there are over 25)! Add to this number the other registering bodies, mix in the "oops" litters that never get registered, the registerable dogs that don't get registered, all of the strays and all of the labs stuck in shelters or rescues right now and the true Labrador Retriever has become lost in translation.

If you need a reason not to breed your Lab, I would highly suggest looking at the Petfinder website to see how many available labs there are out there in the United States alone. Unfortunately, many of these homeless labs never make it out of these shelters alive.

Now ponder this. You should breed ONLY under the following conditions:
You are active in dog clubs, competitions and of further IMPROVING the Labrador breed.
Your dog is mature enough (2 years or older).
Your dog is themselves titled proving that they are a capable working dog as the breed standard outlines and not just from "champion bloodlines".
Your dog is free from genetic and physical defects and has all OFA clearances and eye certifications of favorable scores completed and on record.
Your dog is of sound temperment.

A registered dog is not an indicator of QUALITY!
Most dogs, even purebreds, should not be bred. Many dogs, though wonderful pets, have defects of structure, personality or health that should not be perpetuated. Breeding animals should be proven free of these defects before starting on a reproductive career. If you do not know what these defects are that we are talking about, you should not be breeding. Breeding should only be done with the goal of improvement - an honest attempt to create puppies better than their parents. Ignorance is no excuse - once you have created a life, you can't take it back, even if blind, crippled or a canine psychopath!

And finally, the folks at Kelrobin Labradors put together a great clearing house for articles related to breeding. Read all of these articles. If you are not interested in testing for hips, elbows, eyes and cardiac, you should not be thinking about breeding.

Breeding is not as simple as putting two dogs together. There is a lot to be invested into doing it right. Labradors are the #1 dog in the USA in more ways than just breed popularity. Labs and Lab mixes also have the second highest numbers in rescue and in shelters are are euthanized at a higher rate than most other breeds. In many ways people see Labs as "a dime a dozen". Don't add to the problem. Get out there and help save our beloved breed by being responsible and neutering your pet dogs.

Keep in mind we are not anti-breeding folks, we are anti-bybing folks. The responsible, reputable breeders are not the problem.

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